Well... Once I was angry at my dog Sam, so I called him "Sam (instert N word here)" he reacted to it... he jumped up and started licking my face, so I guess he liked it... so that has sorta become his nickname....

My dad always calls our cat the rat, so I picked up the habit too. The animal, king tut, walnut-brain, and often just "cat" work well in most situations. His real name is Emlet, because I was little when I named him, and I liked the word omlet. I prefer use of his other names.